Hi I live in a humid climate 2 miles from ocean and don't use my mig for long periods sometimes and just threw out a large spool of wire that had only been used 2 times because it had started to rust from not being used for 3 months. I was wondering if any of you krow of any product that could be sprayed on the wire to protect it without effecting the quality of the weld. Thanks Mur 39

I don't know of anything you can spray on. If the wire is at all rusty, unroll a few layers and see if there is clean stuff underneath.
You could try clamping a peice of scotchbrite to the wire with a clothes pin or spring clamp to brush off small debris and some corrosion, but if it has any rust at all, pitch it or give it to someone you don't like.
I always wrap my wire in a bag with some desssicant if I'm not using it for more than a week or so. It isn't usually a problem in my shop unless I switch to a different size wire in one of my welders.

I keep all the little desicant packs that seem to come in everything from electronics to some tools and all kinds of things that you buy. My MIG is a side loader and I place them in the bottom of the compartment that holds the wire. I probably have 20 or 30 of the little packs in there right now and I have no problems with rust on my wire. Every so often I will put the packs in the oven (about every 2 weeks or so) and it seems to rejuvenate the pacs. I eventually replace them about every 6 months or so. I do live in a rather humid part of texas and that is my fix for rusty wire problems.

As much trouble as it may be taking the wire spool off and placing it in an air tight plastic bag is the best solution, the desiccant packs gc mentioned are a great idea.

The Copper plating DOES NOT protect from rusting that is not what it is there for. This is another one of those common myths that can lead to problems if someone thinks their wire might be safer because of the Copper coating. The Copper plating is there to reduce wear on the wire sizing dies at the factory and is far too thin to provide ANY moisture protection.

That is a killer idea, gcrmcc,
IIRC the little granules in disposable diapers are a very absorbant material, would tossing a pampers in the floor of the welder act the same as the little bags? I honestly don't know if the material is the same, but after having experience with 3 kids worth I know they are VERY good at holding their liquid.
I know that they put rice in salt shakers in humid climates, to keep the salt from clumping.
I'm just thinking of the kind of stuff a guy could use if he didn't buy new stuff with the little bags of dessicant.

A while back, my new neighbor who had just bought the muffler shop next to mine called me over to ask why his welds were crappy. I saw he put a roll of .035 MIG wire in his welder that had been sitting under the chop saw bench in the back of the shop for several years. It was all spotted with rust. You could barely weld with it. It was so rusty that when you pulled the trigger and fed wire without welding a cloud of rusty dust would blow out with the gas. We pulled about 1/4" worth of wraps of wire off the spool and got down to some wire that was a little cleaner, put a new tip, cleaned the liner ,clamped the scrubber pad on it, and he finished the day with it, as was a little better to weld with.
With the way he welded then, I don't think anyone will notice the rusty pinholes anyway . Glad it's only mufflers. He bought a new spool the next day anyway.
later,
Mikey

That is a killer idea, gcrmcc,
IIRC the little granules in disposable diapers are a very absorbant material, would tossing a pampers in the floor of the welder act the same as the little bags? I honestly don't know if the material is the same, Mikey

Mikey, I don't think pampers are going to do the same as dessicant pacs. I think the pampers are filled with highly absorbent pads and fibers that absorb when soaked with "liquids". Dessicant absorbs moisture from the air. I don't think a pampers will absorb moisture from the air, a good thought though.

My first reply to this thread was about the dumbest thing I have seen here, I reread it and found that I said "take the wire off the spool and place it in a plastic bag" What I meant to say was "take the wire spool off". On most machines this is not a lot of trouble and is good idea for someone who may not be planing on using the welder again for a while but of course it would be a PITA solution for everyday use. That desiccant idea sounds like a winner but I have for years used the plastic bags that most spools come in to store the wire when I don't intend to use it for a few days or if conditions are apt to cause rusting.

The best method for preventing rust does require a little work on your part. A Dorm size refrigerator is what I use. Install a 100 watt protected bulb fixture inside. Stays on all the time. Should maintain about a 100 dg temp inside the box. I also put a computer cooling fan in there to move the air about. Store all your wire and rods in there when not using.That means if you are not welding every day, take it out of the welder ,put it back in it bag but don't sealit, Let it breath. I'm not talking about spools that you use in few days, but for consumables that will be used over a long period of time. I have a fifty lb box of 10018 in there that is twenty years old (it was cheap and ten lbs left) That welds as good now as it did when it was new. I don't reccommend buying rod or wire in large quantities unless you are using large quantities. A hot box will rejuvinate rod that has been left out if it hasn't formed rust on it.

An oven is a great asset for someone who uses a lot of rods and wire but may be a bit excessive for storing only a couple of two lb or even 10 lb rolls of wire and would require removing the spool. But 61 is right that is by far the best solution to storing welding consumables especially rods and flux core wire either duel shield or gas-less. Even if there is no rust the Hydrogen embrittlement that results from the moisture that will be in rods/wire left exposed to the air for more than a few hours will produce inferior welds. When welding any critical component such as steering parts it is not just a good idea to dry the rods/wire in an oven before using but is really a necessity for getting the best weld. This is not usually considered necessary for clean solid wire but if using gas-less or low Hydrogen stick it can make a difference.

My first reply to this thread was about the dumbest thing I have seen here, I reread it and found that I said "take the wire off the spool and place it in a plastic bag" What I meant to say was "take the wire spool off". On most machines this is not a lot of trouble and is good idea for someone who may not be planing on using the welder again for a while but of course it would be a PITA solution for everyday use. That desiccant idea sounds like a winner but I have for years used the plastic bags that most spools come in to store the wire when I don't intend to use it for a few days or if conditions are apt to cause rusting.

"Take the wire off the spool" I can't believe I said that

Take the wire off the spool? I didn't catch that one but funny!! oldred, I have had this mig welder about 5 years now and have been using the dessicant pacs for 9 years. I learned on my first mig in the winter where I am at in TX the wire would get rusty in a week or so. I tried the the pacs then and I haven't had rust since. Normally I go through a 10lb spool in less than a month but winter slows me way down so it might be 2 or 3 months or more before I use a spool up and the wire has been good to go every time I get the welder out again. You just have rejuvinate the dessicant pacs in the oven at 250 degrees for an hour or so about every 2 or 3 weeks and change them out about every 6 months. I always change them at early spring and early winter, thats when our wet seasons usually start.

Yup, I say rather silly things when I type and post sometimes than I reread it over and edit it. Must be an age thing.

gcrmcc

Last edited by gcrmcc; 11-30-2006 at 12:10 PM.
Reason: dumb me, didn't sound right again

For years I had a couple of large Phoenix-dry rod brand ovens to store my rods/wire in, these things would hold a bunch of 50 lb cans of rods and with one of the shelves removed a couple of 60 lb rolls of wire too. The heat could be set to over 500 deg (never saw a need for that) and would keep rods/wire bone dry forever. Since I have retired and sold my shop I have been faced with keeping my consumables dry by other means which I never had to do before so I have been using the plastic bags which has worked fine so far but I had not thought about the desiccant, excellent idea!

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